Today marks five years since Britain and America declared war on Iraq against Saddam Hussein and his ‘weapons of mass destruction’.

In a series of stories this week FIONA GRAY will be looking at how Reading people, both families of local soldiers who served in Iraq and peace campaigners from the town, have been affected by the conflict. We speak to a priest who has just returned from Basra and an Iraqi family who have settled in Reading about life for relatives back home. We begin with dad James Donnachie who has lost his son Paul in the war

It was the proudest moment of his life and, at the same time, the most heartbreaking.

James Donnachie, a facilities manager from Burghfield Common, stood in the Imperial War Museum looking at a picture of his son Paul included in one of the most important works of art in recent history.

Rifleman Paul Donnachie’s face is one of the 175 included in artist Steve McQueen’s Queen and Country, a work that pictures every British soldier who has died in Iraq on a postage stamp.

“It was really touching to see his face and difficult at the same time because of what it was all about,” says Mr Donnachie who saw the artwork unveiled in November last year. “You were there with other families and that was the thing – he’s not the only one.”

Paul, 18, died in Basra city on April 29, just last year, while peacekeeping.

The member of the 2nd Battalion the Rifles, based in Weeton in Lancashire, was looking for bombs around police stations with other soldiers.

As he climbed out of the armoured vehicle, an Iraqi insurgent took a shot from the top of a building, which caught Paul between his armour plates and proved fatal. He was the 146th British soldier to die in Iraq.

“Joining the army was what he always wanted to do,” explained Mr Donnachie. “He joined the cadets when he was 13. When he finished army training he had a choice as to which battalion he chose. He went for the one going on the next tour of duty – he wanted to get in amongst it and be a front line soldier.”

Like most of the soldiers in his battalion, Paul was excited and proud to be serving his country, but he knew it was not a view everybody shared.

“When he came home for a mid-tour break, he had been warned not to expect a hero’s welcome,” said his dad. “Most people won’t know you have been away. It’s disappointing – when you go through such an arduous time you would like to think people would be willing to pat you on the back but, other than family and friends, they didn’t.”

As he looks back over a difficult five years for the Armed Forces in Iraq, Mr Donnachie wants the British people to recognise the work they have done.

“We can get up in the morning and our biggest problem is the traffic and the weather and they are making that possible for us,” he said.

“We only get snippets of news every few weeks but what they are doing is on a daily basis. We were amazed how much Paul did while he was out there.

“You have got to be proud of the fact that they were willing to join the services and take on the role in such good cheer. The ones in the services don’t make the decisions as to where they are going; they just get on with the job.”

On the five-year anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq war, there have been suggestions for an Armed Forces Day, the return of homecoming parades and putting McQueen’s commemorative stamps in circulation.

“For centuries kings and queens and governments have waged war and soldiers and servicemen go and fight it,” said Mr Donnachie. “They don’t choose the war – if you are cross about the war it’s the politicians you should blame and you have got the ballot box.

“Some sort of public remembrance like a parade would show people the right thing to do, and something everyday like the stamps is quite widespread, whereas if they are just in a museum only a few people see them.

“It’s a conversation point for years to come. Paul’s friends would see the stamps and say ‘I know that guy, I went to school with him’.”

Mr Donnachie is supporting a call by Mr McQueen to complete the artwork by getting the stamps released in general circulation. If you would like to join the campaign, you can add your name to the online petition, which already has more than 10,000 signatures.